School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies Te Kura Tātari Reo

Apply now

Ethnolinguistic vitality of NZSL

According to criteria in the UNESCO “Language Vitality and Endangerment” assessment tool, NZSL has a “vulnerable” status. 

This was the conclusion drawn by a 2013–2014 project to assess the ethnolinguistic vitality of NZSL. We gathered quantitative and qualitative information, including surveys, interviews, statistics and other documentary evidence, to inform this assessment.

    NZSL was found to fit the criteria for 'vulnerable' status on UNESCO's Language Vitality and Endangerment scale, even though its legal status was strengthened in the NZSL Act (2006).

    Positive factors in the vitality of NZSL include wider recognition of Deaf people' s language identity, growth in interpreting provision, teaching of NZSL in educational institutions, and increased support for documentation of NZSL.

    Nevertheless, current conditions for the transmission and maintenance of NZSL are precarious. Common threats to the survival of signed languages include the shrinking of Deaf populations, linked to medical advances reducing the incidence of congenital deafness, infant cochlear implantation (and associated aural-oral language choice), and loss of congregated school placements in which NZSL is used. Intergenerational transmission of a signed language is heavily reliant on the education system, and access to NZSL in this context remains limited.

    For further information on sign language endangerment, see: Worldwide Project on Sign Language Endangerment.

    Reports, presentations and publications

    McKee, Rachel. 2017. “Assessing the Vitality of New Zealand Sign Language.” Sign Language Studies 17 (3). https://doi.org/10.1353/sls.2017.0008

    McKee, Rachel, and Kirsten Smiler. 2017. Family Language Policy for Deaf Children and the Vitality of New Zealand Sign Language. In J. Macalister and S. H. Mirvahedi (Eds.), Family Language Policies in a Multilingual World: Opportunities, Challenges and Consequences (pp. 30 - 55). Routledge. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315619552-8/family-language-policy-deaf-children-vitality-new-zealand-sign-language-rachel-mckee-kirsten-smiler

    McKee, Rachel, and Victoria Manning. 2015. “Evaluating Effects of Language Recognition on Language Rights and the Vitality of New Zealand Sign Language.” Sign Language Studies 15 (4): 58. https://doi.org/10.1353/sls.2015.001